socks, finally
If I admitted a pair of socks took me a year and a half to knit, would you wonder what had gone wrong?
Why I didn’t give up on them? It wouldn’t be the first pair I walked away from.
issue one: the colourway
This was named Spring Leaf Stripes and is a combination of grey, black, white, … and yellow. While I don’t like white in my socks (or my leaves), the bigger issue was the lack of green. These spring leaves need to have the mulch cleared away so they can see the sun and photosynthesis can do its magic. Once I mentally renamed it “bumble bee” I was able to knit. The photo is with some autumn foliage, the colours didn’t match them either, unless it was to pair with the roads we traveled looking at their beautiful colours.
issue two: gauge
Always. Check. Gauge.
I’ve knit this yarn base before so I just took my notes from the last time and went to town. Only after needing to make heel decision did I stop and check the fit. They were too big. The next time I stopped a bit earlier and this pair was definitely too narrow. It took until the third try for me to get them right.
issue three: heel choice
I also wanted to experiment with the heel of these socks. Given my ultimate gauge, I had to rework the numbers from Amy’s Favorite Toe-Up Socks for my stitch count and the first time I did the math in margins of the pattern while stuck in traffic (don’t worry, I wasn’t driving). That went as great as you can imagine. It took me a while to admit I had to rip back and rework. Once I did, the socks practically knit themselves.
conclusion
They were worth the wait but I’ve encountered bases I like better for hard wearing socks, such as Happy Fuzzy Yarn Corrie sock. I do like how the heel fits and it’s nice to have another pair to go into rotation. My sock drawer thinned (it’s often easier to just reknit than repair my socks. Don’t worry, old socks find a new life as cat toys).
project details
Ravelry project page
needles: 2mm
size: my size 35 feet
yarn: Patons North America Kroy Socks Stripes in #1403 Spring Leaf Stripes
heel: Amy’s Favorite Toe-Up Socks reworked for my gauge.